JJB Stadium

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JJB Stadium

The JJB
View of the JJB from the South Stand during a game between Wigan Athletic and Gillingham in 2004
Full name	JJB Stadium
Location	Loire Drive, Robin Park, Wigan WN5 0UH
Coordinates	53°32′52″N 2°39′14″W / 53.54778°N 2.65389°W / 53.54778; -2.65389Coordinates: 53°32′52″N 2°39′14″W / 53.54778°N 2.65389°W / 53.54778; -2.65389
Built	1999 [1][2]
Opened	1999
Owner	Whelco Holdings
Operator	Wigan Football Company Ltd
Construction cost	£30m GBP [2]
Architect	Alfred McAlpine [1][2]
Capacity	25,135 [1]
Field dimensions	110 by 60 metres (120 yd × 66 yd) [1]
Tenants
Wigan Athletic F.C. (1999-present) [2] Wigan Warriors (Super League) (1999-present) [2] Orrell R.U.F.C. (2002-2003) [3]

The JJB Stadium (colloquially known as The JJB, and due to be renamed the DW Stadium in August 2009^[4]) is a dual-purpose sports stadium located within the Robin Park retail complex in Wigan, England, opened and built in 1999.^[1] The stadium is named after its principal sponsor, the sporting goods retailer JJB Sports, whose former chairman David Whelan owns Wigan Athletic and effectively owns the stadium through his company, Whelco Holdings.^[5] The stadium is managed by an independent company, Wigan Football Company Limited.^[1] The stadium will be renamed as the DW Stadium on 1 August 2009.^[6]

Both football and rugby league matches are played on its grass pitch, and the stadium is home to both a football team and a rugby league team; Wigan Athletic and Wigan Warriors respectively. Its current capacity is 25,135 seated in four single-tier stands. The stadium has hosted international rugby league games, particularly during the Tri Nations series. Its several lounges and suites also play host to musical acts, although the stadium is not generally considered as a major venue.

[edit] History

The JJB Stadium was built by Alfred McAlpine and completed in August 1999.^[1] Wigan Athletic had spent the previous 67 years playing at Springfield Park, and their first match at the JJB Stadium was a friendly against Morecambe, just before the stadium's official opening.^[7]

The stadium's inauguration was marked with a friendly between Wigan Athletic and neighbours Manchester United, who were then reigning European Champions, with Sir Alex Ferguson officially opening the stadium. The first competitive football match there took place on 7 August 1999, with Wigan Athletic facing Scunthorpe United in a Division Two match. Simon Haworth scored twice, including the first competitive goal at the new stadium, as Athletic triumphed 3-0.^[8]

The first away team to win a competitive football match at the JJB Stadium was Wigan Athletic.^[9] A first round FA Cup tie against non-league Cambridge City was played there due to City's ground being deemed unsuitable to host the tie. Wigan played in their change strip and used the away dressing room since it was technically a 'home' game for Cambridge City. A Stuart Barlow brace secured the win for Wigan.

Wigan RLFC moved to the JJB Stadium a month after it opened, once they had played their final home game of the 1999 regular season at Central Park. Their first game at the JJB Stadium was a play-off match against Castleford Tigers, which they lost, on 19 September.^[10] Wigan did not lose a competitive match at the JJB Stadium in 2001.^[11]

On 7 March 2005 Greater Manchester police announced that they would stop policing Wigan Athletic matches at the stadium from 2 April. This move would almost certainly have resulted in the stadium's safety certificate being revoked, effectively forcing the team to play behind closed doors. The move was part of an ongoing dispute between the police force and David Whelan surrounding GB£300,000 in unpaid policing costs. The police's decision would not have affected Wigan RLFC, whose games are stewarded instead of policed. The situation was temporarily resolved on 8 March with both sides reaching an agreement that would allow Athletic to play at the ground until the end of the season. Four months later, Wigan, facing the prospect of playing their home games in the FA Premier League in an empty stadium, grudgingly paid the money they owed to the police. However, the club successfully appealed against the payments in court and won damages from the police.^[12]

Further problems emerged on 7 September 2008, when Wigan RLFC announced plans to move to a neutral venue (eventually announced as Widnes' home ground, the Stobart Stadium) for the club's upcoming Super League play-off against Bradford Bulls after it was announced that the JJB Stadium would be unavailable to the rugby league club due to a football match between Wigan Athletic and Sunderland taking place less than 24 hours later.^[13] The decision to move venues had a hostile response with many of the town's rugby league supporters with a majority of fans finding the JJB Stadium's owner, and Wigan Athletic chairman, Dave Whelan at fault for the controversy, something picked up on by the national press.^[14][15][16] In the same season, JJB announced they would stop sponsoring the Wigan Warriors, effectively leaving them without a main shirt sponsor in a difficult economic climate.^[17][18] Many Warriors fans responded to Whelan's actions by taping over the JJB logo on their replica shirts for the match Vs Bradford at Widnes. Some Wigan fans pinned a picture of Dave Whelan with a red 'X' through it onto their shirts in protest.^[19]

The stadium's average attendance has increased significantly since its opening in 1999. The Wigan Warriors' average attendance has increased by 32.5% from its first full season at the JJB Stadium in 2000, and Wigan Athletic's average attendance has increased by 181.2% from the 2000-01 season. The highest recorded attendance for a rugby league match is shared between three fixtures; the Wigan Warriors' fixture against St Helens RLFC on 25 March 2005; Game 4 of the 2005 Tri-Nations series between Great Britain and Australia on 6 November; and Game 5 of the 2004 Tri-Nations series between Great Britain and Australia on 13 November at 25,004 each.^[20][21][22] The highest recorded football attendance at the JJB Stadium was Wigan Athletic's home fixture against Manchester United on 11 May 2008 – the final day of the 2007-08 Premier League season – with 25,133 fans attending.^[23] This is the JJB Stadium's highest recorded overall attendance to date, and was the match where Manchester United were crowned Premier League champions for that season.^[24]

In March 2009, David Whelan acquired a chain of fitness clubs from JJB Sports. In the process, Whelan used the business to set up a new venture, DWSportsfitness and announced that the stadium name would change to the DW Stadium in August.^[4]

[edit] Structure and facilities

The stadium design is based on cantilevered, prefabricated steel roof and terrace structuring.^[1] It is an all-seater arena with a seating capacity of 25,135. The stands are rectangular and both the north and south stands have the supporting steel girders suspended from beneath the roof. The four stands are of roughly the same height, however the stadium is not totally enclosed, leaving four exposed corners which currently act as an exit for disabled supporters.

At both Wigan Athletic and Wigan RLFC matches, away supporters are situated in the north stand behind the goal.^[2] This stand holds 5,378 spectators.^[1] Occasionally, during games which attract low away support, the north stand is closed altogether, and the away fans who attend are put into an alternative stand.

The stadium does not name its stands, and none of them are sponsored by name. The eastern and western stands run across the longer sides of the pitch. The east stand is largest, capable of seating up to 8,206 fans and holding an electronic scoreboard.^[1] The west stand contains the stadium's vital facilities; four dressing rooms, benches, a doping control room and a treatment room for the players, as well as four executive boxes, ten radio commentary points and a designated TV studio, in addition to holding 6,072 fans.^[1][25] The northern and southern stands both have just under 6,000 seats each.^[1] The stadium also has facilities and access for up to 278 disabled fans, with facilities for partially sighted fans.^[25] The seats are a mixture of both resident teams' main colours – red and blue. The stadium is fully compliant with safety guidelines for a sports ground.^[25]

The pitch is large enough to conform with both FIFA and the standard rugby league requirements, at 110 by 60 metres (120 yd × 66 yd). This leaves an in-goal area just 5 metres (5.5 yd) deep for rugby matches. It is mostly made of natural grass, with 2% of the pitch composed of synthetics to provide stability.^[1] Like most modern stadia, the ground has irrigation, and an under-heating system to resist icy weather.

[edit] Attendances

Graph showing average and highest attendances for the Wigan Warriors at the JJB Stadium since the 1999 season

[edit] Wigan Warriors

Wigan RLFC moved from Central Park to the JJB Stadium in 1999 after the end of Super League IV's regular season. Since moving to the new stadium, Wigan Warriors' success in rugby league has dropped significantly. Despite being one of the most successful rugby league clubs in England, Wigan have not won a Super League Grand Final since moving to the JJB Stadium, and have only won the Challenge Cup once in that time.^[26]

Attendances have generally risen for the Wigan Warriors since the start of the 2002 season, averaging around 15,000 over the three seasons from 2006 to 2008.^[27] Aside from Grand Finals, the largest Super League attendance was recorded at the JJB stadium in 2005 when Wigan Warriors played their local rivals, St Helens RLFC.^[28]

• Wigan Warriors played one match at the JJB Stadium in 1999 during the Super League IV play-offs.

Graph showing average and highest attendances for Wigan Athletic at the JJB Stadium since the 2000-01 season

[edit] Wigan Athletic F.C.

Wigan Athletic's success has improved considerably since their move to the JJB Stadium from Springfield Park in 1999. Since 2000, Wigan Athletic have climbed up three divisions and currently play in the FA Premier League.

Rising success on the pitch has been met with increased attendances. Promotion into the Premier League meant that in their first season of English top-flight football, Wigan Athletic's average home attendance almost doubled from the season before. Over three times more fans attended matches at the JJB Stadium in the 2007-08 season than had done in the 2001-02 season, although Wigan Athletic's average home attendance for 2007-08 was the lowest out of all 20 teams in the Premier League, just higher than half the league's total average.^[38] The same season saw the highest ever attendance at the JJB Stadium, when Manchester United F.C. played on the final day of the season.

Wigan Athletic's average attendance was again the lowest in the league for the Premier League 2008-09 season.^[41] Although Premier League attendances fell on average by around 426 per club during the 2008-09 season, Wigan Athletic's fell by more than this, with their average attendance for the 2008-09 season falling by around 700 from the season before. Additionally, the highest attendance at the JJB Stadium for this season was a match between Wigan Athletic and Arsenal F.C., in which 22,954 people were counted. This attendance was over 2,000 fans lower than the highest attendance in the season before.

[edit] Other events

The final home Test for Great Britain against New Zealand, played at the JJB Stadium in 2007

The stadium's numerous lounges provide a venue for small musical acts to perform, and the stadium plays host to minor bands and tribute acts. They are also available to book for private parties.^[42] During matchdays, bands also provide pre-match entertainment on the pitch.

As well as the fixtures for the two domestic teams, the JJB is a venue for international rugby league. It has hosted a match in the 2004 and 2005 Tri Nations series, as well as two matches versus New Zealand in 2002 and 2007, and two Ashes matches in 2001 and 2003.^{[43][44][45][46][47][48]}

[edit] Surroundings

The stadium's surroundings are mostly urban, as it is located in the north of Wigan's Robin Park retail complex in the western suburb of Newtown, on the south bank of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, west of the Miry Lane industrial estate. The stadium's car parks are situated around the canal, and can hold up to 2,000 cars and 30-40 coaches.^[1] Next to the stadium's south stand lies the Robin Park arena, which is operated by Wigan Sports Development Unit and capable of seating 1,000 spectators. The arena is mainly used for athletics, as well as its function as the home of North West Counties Football League side Wigan Robin Park, and Wigan Athletic Reserves. The arena was formerly used by the Wigan Warriors' junior academy, however they moved to Edge Hall Road to join the reserve side.^[49][50] Robin Park Sports Centre is situated directly opposite the Stadium and Arena.

The main road serving the complex is the A49, running west-bound 750 metres (820 yd) south of the stadium. Both of Wigan's train stations, Wigan Wallgate and Wigan North Western lie 1.3–1.6 kilometres (0.8–1.0 mi) east of the JJB Stadium.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• JJB Stadium official site
• Stadium Guide Article

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